Did 49ers cancel mandatory minicamp to keep Brandon Aiyuk away?

The Brandon Aiyuk story took another turn on Sunday. One day after Aiyuk posted two images on his Instagram page, one of him wearing a Washington Commanders‘ hat, and another with a Commanders‘ football, with a simple message to his current team, the San Francisco 49ers: “X the cap (emoji) the gig is up!”

This time, Aiyuk posted a video on Instagram, with a direct message to his current team, who he hasn’t played for since 2024.

Here’s a transcript of what Aiyuk said, courtesy of Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk.

Stop running from the belt. The belt coming. You scared. They scared. The truth is they scared. They know how I get. They gonna say, ‘Oh, yeah, B.A. did this, B.A. did that.’ You know that shit — ‘Allegedly. Allegedly.’ But what they not gonna say is ‘B.A. suck at football,’ because they know how I get. And they running from that belt that’s on the way. It’s inevitable. It’s coming. Stop running.

Stop running from the belt. The belt coming. You scared. They scared. The truth is they scared. They know how I get. They gonna say, ‘Oh, yeah, B.A. did this, B.A. did that.’ You know that shit — ‘Allegedly. Allegedly.’ But what they not gonna say is ‘B.A. suck at football,’ because they know how I get. And they running from that belt that’s on the way. It’s inevitable. It’s coming. Stop running.

Why is Aiyuk coming out with all of this over the weekend? Last week, Aiyuk was issued an arrest warrant for a misdemeanor exhibition of speed. The incident occurred in December, when Aiyuk posted a video on YouTube of him allegedly speeding at over 100 MPH in front of Levi’s Stadium.

But that’s not why Aiyuk has been so active on social media this weekend.

Could it be his response to 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan, who recently canceled San Francisco‘s mandatory minicamp this week? Shanahan reportedly canceled the minicamp as a reward for the team’s strong offseason work.

Aiyuk didn’t report for any of San Francisco’s offseason program or OTAs. Why? Because they were voluntary. However, if Aiyuk had reported to the mandatory minicamp this week, he could’ve forced GM John Lynch’s hand on releasing him. Now that the 49ers have canceled the mandatory minicamp, they are off until training camp begins next month. This means another six weeks could go by with San Francisco holding onto Aiyuk’s rights, even though they’ve said he’s played his last down for them.

The 49ers do not want Aiyuk on the roster. Aiyuk clearly wants to be with Washington and not San Francisco. Aiyuk has no trade value for two reasons: his contract and the injury he suffered in 2024. He hasn’t played since October 2024, so no team is taking on that contract under any circumstances. While Aiyuk may be fully healthy now, no one really knows. And the 49ers are unwilling to give him what he wants: a release so he can reunite with Jayden Daniels in Washington.

San Francisco can now hold onto Aiyuk under the guise that it’s still fielding potential trade offers until Aiyuk reports. If and when he does report, Lynch will be forced to act, likely releasing Aiyuk. The longer the 49ers wait to release Aiyuk, the more likely it is that he’ll be unable to make an impact for his new team (likely the Commanders) in 2026.

Lynch or Shanahan isn’t going to admit they canceled the minicamp to keep Aiyuk away. Maybe that’s not the reason. Of course, who knows if Aiyuk would’ve shown up? Common sense says he would have, in an effort to force his release and land with his preferred team immediately.

There’s only so much longer that the 49ers can continue this dance with Aiyuk. That is, of course, if Aiyuk calls their bluff. If he doesn’t, then San Francisco does hold all the cards. All Aiyuk must do next is just show up for training camp.

It should be an interesting summer until then.